T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan: Break BCCI's monopoly over Indian cricket

Narendra Modi must disband it and do three other things to get something better in its place

Everyone wants the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to be 'reformed'. But you know what? Everyone in India wants to reform something or the other. But very few know what exactly to do.

In fact, this reform thing has been going on ever since Lord William Bentinck, Governor-General of Bengal, passed a law banning sati in 1829. And for the BCCI, Lord Bentinck provides the clue.

Before we come to that, it is worth mentioning that this newspaper was the first, in 1995, to say that it needed to be reformed. What prompted that tiny editorial moan of worry was that in 1993 the Supreme Court had allowed the BCCI to sell its TV rights to the highest bidder. A flood of money would thus flow through it over a three-year period. The editorial had said this kind of money could not be left to a closed and self-perpetuating club to administer.

Like all editorials, this one too passed silently into the night.

Since then the BCCI has grown into one of the world's biggest sports conglomerates and oversees several hundred million dollars. Its official balance sheet, however, does not quite reveal the real extent of its financial power. Suffice it to say that even the powerful British and Australian cricket boards now kowtow to it.

The huge sums BCCI handles has led to the usual scams and scandals. Corruptio optimi pessima. The corruption of the best is the worst.

What to reform
Honey will attract flies but if there is only one pot of honey - the BCCI - all the flies go to it, which is the central problem. If there were more pots, the number of flies would remain the same but would be distributed over a larger number of pots.

Alas, that is not the case and in the ensuing scramble to get the honey from it, some flies are getting stuck to it, to perish. This is what has happened now in the BCCI.

Consider this: you can have one soap company that offers a dozen brands of soap or a dozen companies that offer one brand each. In either case, as far as choice is concerned, the consumer is no worse off. And as far as price is concerned he/she is better off because competition always leads to lower prices.

This is exactly what has to be kept in mind while designing the reform of BCCI, which is a monopoly as well as a multi-product firm. It offers Test matches, 50-over games, T20s, the Indian Premier League, Duleep Trophy, Irani Trophy and Ranji Trophy.

It is operating in a seller's market where, moreover, there is enormous excess demand. Super-normal profits are therefore natural and guaranteed, as are those people who will skim off the top.

So the first step in reforming the BCCI has to be to break up its monopoly over Indian cricket. There is simply no other way.

The political will to do this would come only when people realise that the BCCI's articles of association were designed by our British rulers to keep it mainly an all-White body. Indians would be admitted provided they were very pukka brown sahibs. This exclusion objective was ensured by making it a self-perpetuating body. Now it is done by purchasing the votes of district associations.

This self-granted monopoly lies at the heart of the problem. It results in all the nonsense we are seeing now - whimsy, autocracy, favouritism, intense personal rivalries, massive opportunities for corruption, disregard for players and so on.

How to reform
First, a law needs to be passed, dissolving the BCCI by abrogating its articles of association on grounds that are unchallengeable in the courts. This is a must. National/public interest would do the trick.

Second, politicians must be barred from the BCCI.

Third, its successor must be formed but with only Tests and 50-over matches as its remit. No T20s. In return the BCCI can retain the right to be the national selector for Tests and 50-over matches.

Four, the 'common carrier' principle must be applied to cricket. This means local cricket associations must offer their stadia and grounds to all comers with T20 matches, and not just to those 'blessed' by the BCCI or its successor.

The rest is a matter of detail and will follow. But who will do all this? Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who else - provided of course, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley allows him.